2011 – 2013 FIRAE Officers

Chairman – Thomas Eulau

Director and Head of Stockholm Region
Swedish Trade Federation / Svensk Handel 

In February 2007, Thomas Eulau was appointed Head of the Stockholm Region at the Swedish Trade Federation (STF). STF is the largest trade association in Sweden representing roughly 13.000 retailers, wholesalers and importers.

Mr. Eulau has been involved with the Forum for International Retail Association Executives (FIRAE) since January 2007 and was elected FIRAE Vice Chairman in 2009.

Earlier at the STF, Mr. Eulau was responsible for developing relations with trade organisations in Eastern European countries—mainly around the Baltic Sea—and then later for European Union relations. Following that, he became Director of Educational Issues and worked to improve public vocational training programmes. In particular, he focused on retail in higher education and chaired a working group that later became the Nordic Retail College Foundation, where he currently serves on its board of directors. This high-profile programme is currently part of the Stockholm School of Economics.

Prior to his current position, Mr. Eulau was responsible for payment issues, focusing on lowering card- & cash-handling costs for STF members. As such, he served as a member of EuroCommerce's Payment Systems Committee.

Before joining the STF in 1996 (at that time, the Swedish Retail Federation), Mr. Eulau held executive positions within the banking sector as well as with a Swedish consultancy focused on international trade financing.

A native of Stockholm, Mr Eulau has studied economics and business administration at the University of Fribourg, Switzerland and international marketing with a concentration on the EU market at Stockholm University (SU). On behalf of SU, he produced reports on the privatisation of state-owned companies and company valuation methodologies.

Thomas is married to Louise. They have three children – Greta, William and Henrik.
 

Vice Chairman – Vicente Yáñez Solloa

Executive Chairman
National Association of Supermarkets and Department Stores (ANTAD)

Vicente Yáñez Solloa is a graduate of the School of Business Administration from Universidad Anahuac, class of 1978. He attended Elementary, Middle and High School at the Summit Institute.

He has worked for the Lux Group, a Mexican company, in business development in the industrial area. For 80 years the company has been dedicated to the manufacture of stainless steel equipment and furniture.

He was part of and chaired several national committees within the National Chamber of Transformation Industries (CANACINTRA) and served as President of the Institution from1998 to 2000.

From 2003 to date, he has been Director and member of the Executive Committee of the Business Coordinating Council (CCE).

During the period 2010 to 2011 he was appointed as a member of the Board of the Mexican Foundation for Health in the XXVII General Assembly of Associates.

Also during the period 1999 to 2001 he served as Vice President of the Confederation of Industrial Chambers of the United Mexican States (CONCAMIN), and from 1998 to 2006 headed the Mexican Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Tourism in Europe (CAMECITE) .

He has participated as a member of the National Board of Finance, National Bank of Foreign Trade, the Institute of National Housing Fund for Workers and the Mexican Society of Standardization and Certification, among others.

From 2003 to date, he serves as Executive Chairman of the National Association of Supermarkets and Department Stores (ANTAD). 

Treasurer – Michael Gerling

Managing Director
EHI Retail Institute

Michael Gerling was appointed managing director for EHI Retail Institute in 1999, where he is responsible for the organization’s research work and for the working groups which deal with capital goods use in retailing.  Additionally, he leads EHI's Trade Shows, Conferences, Publishing, Research Services, Organisation/IT, Finance and Human Resources business unites.  Based in Cologne, Germany, EHI is scientific institute of the retail industry with over 500 members--encompassing retailers, manufacturers, and industry service providers.

Prior to EHI, Mr. Gerling started his career as a trainee at Edeka Handelsgesellschaft Münsterland in 1983. Between 1990 and 1993, he worked for various companies abroad and later joined EHI-EuroHandelsinstitut as senior consultant. Among his various honorary positions, he is managing director of the German food association Bundesverband des Deutschen Lebensmittelhandels e. V. and serves as a member of the board of administration for Absatzfonds.

A graduate of the University of Münster, Mr. Gerling holds a degree in business administration.
 

Immediate Past Chairman – Diane J. Brisebois

President & Chief Executive Officer
Retail Council of Canada

Diane J. Brisebois, CAE, was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Retail Council of Canada (RCC) in January 1995. RCC is the largest retail association in Canada serving over 40,000 retail establishments.

Prior to joining RCC, Ms. Brisebois was Executive Vice-President of the Canadian Office Products Association.

Diane is also the Chairman of the Forum for International Retail Association Executives and Chair of Fair Factory Clearinghouse. Additionally, she serves on the Advisory Board of Ryerson University's School of Retail Management, the University of Alberta's School of Retail, the Advisory Board of Canada Post, the Board of Stewardship Ontario (Ontario Blue Box Program) and Waste Diversion Ontario.

She has also served on the Board of Covenant House Toronto for 6 years and on the Board of the Traffic Injury Research Foundation and served as its chair for three years.

In 2002, Ms. Brisebois received the Pinnacle Award from the Canadian Society of Association Executives (CSAE), which is the most prestigious designation for an Association Executive. In addition, she received the Outstanding Achievement Award from her previous organization, the Canadian Office Products Association.

Ms. Brisebois is a native of Montreal and studied at Concordia University, and St-Laurent College. She has a degree in Social Sciences and Modern Languages as well as her certification in Association Management.

Director and Secretary – Steven E. Glover

Director, Membership Retention and Outreach, National Retail Federation
 

Steven E. Glover joined the National Retail Federation (NRF) in March 2007 as Director, Membership Retention and Outreach, where he collaborates with NRF's members to ensure they receive the greatest value from their membership. NRF is the world's largest retail trade association.

Concurrently, Mr. Glover serves as Director and Secretary for the Forum for International Retail Association Executives (FIRAE), an organization of retail trade association CEOs from more than 30 countries, whose goal is to exchange information and ideas to advance the global retail industry. 

Prior to NRF, Mr. Glover served as Director of International Marketing for the Life Underwriter Training Council (LUTC), where he led the organization's international operations and managed its 15 country affiliates. He has presented and published for the American Society of Association Executives, of which he is currently a member, on topics such as globalization strategy for associations, international marketing, and cross-cultural communication.

Mr. Glover holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Spanish and political science from Towson University, is fluent in Spanish, and has a working knowledge of French and Portuguese.